Although this book is richly adorned with many fine glimpses of Hearn's beloved adopted land, what most captivated me was the story of Hamaguchi Gohei. Hearn relates this historical event very effectively over a number of pages. Here's my poor summary:
There once was an old farmer named Hamaguchi. His land lay on a plateau above a coastal village. One day there was a harvest dance in the courtyard of the village temple. Hamaguchi felt too tired to go. His ten-year old grandson stayed home with him. As Hamaguchi looked down at the festival, he felt a minor tremor. It wasn't felt in the village, but something else was noticed. The water fled from land, something no one alive there had ever seen, though Hamaguchi had heard his grandather talk of the like. People left the temple and went to take a closer look at what now lay exposed in the bed of the retreating sea.
Hamaguchi called to his grandson, "Quick! Get me a torch!" The boy obeyed. Hamaguchi then walked along setting fire to his stacks of rice. These were pretty well his total worth. The boy grew quite alarmed and Hamaguchi was too preoccupied to allay his fears. The people left the marvel of the vanishing sea and climbed the hill for the communal task of fighting fire. When the fastest young men arrived Hamaguchi said, "Let it burn, lads, let it burn; I want everyone here." As more arrived, Hamaguchi's grandson said, "Grandfather is crazy; he set that fire himself."
"The boy is right," said Hamaguchi. "I set the fire. Is everybody here?" They told him that even the slowest were almost at the top of the hill. Then Hamaguchi pointed. The tsunami hit the coast hard, and when the sea regained its normal place, nothing could be seen of the village, except two of its ninety roofs lying on the ground. "Now, tell me I am crazy," said Hamaguchi, "That was why I set the fire." The people felt there was the spirit of a god in old Hamaguchi. When they were able to rebuild the village, they had his name inscribed in the new temple and prayed to him, even while he lived in his old house on top of the hill. And they were still praying to him in 1897 when Hearn passed on this noteworthy event, more than a century after it happenned.
Among the other fascinating scenes of this gem of a book are: the piece on the songs song by the laundrymen, etc, the description of Osaka, old and new, Hearn's reference to the crowds silent even on the return of a triumphant army, a documented case of reincarnation, etc. This is a very good read.